Educational oil game board



Nov. 15, 1955 A. J. MILLER ET AL EDUCATIONAL OIL GAME BOARD Filed July29, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 ALBERT J. MILLER 8 HAROLD C.THOMPSON BYCLYLJZM (43% ORNEY Nov. 15, 1955 Filed July 29, 1952 A. J. MILLER ET ALEDUCATIONAL OIL GAME BOARD 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 5i Z5" CHART A Y Z7 /Z,5f/Lf TYPE oFDRlLLING J f EA R N N G s NO w LD c A T PROV E N sTRuKERESULTSNO sms/LES lfg SHOWN UIL, DRILL 50,000 5 2\0 00 2 DEEPER, $\0,000ST R IK E LARGE WEI-L 2 l 00,000 64,000 D R Y SHOWOFOILDRILL GAS WELLSELLUN |50O0O 96000 3 oEEPERFlopoo DERGROUHQSMOOO 3 200.000 .28,000

250,000 160.00 4 STR I K E ST R l K E ggsgleuLNLqssEl-; 4 500,000 @2,0025 DRY DRY SMALLWELL 5 l e TJ-Lrzs' DR Y SMALL WELL 6 c, 525328LosTTO0L,F|S|-|ms 550,000 352,000 7 DRY :roacossz-,ooo SMALL WELL 7@00,000 584.000 8 DRY DRY sMALL WELL e ,253;322 2;?832 9 imi'as# MEDIUMWELL Q 2,222 2222s GIA WE L ELLLIN` 85 y 544 |0 DRY DRY neussmuhsmvw 0903,222 576.223 n DRY sTRnK E MEDIUM WELL M 35222 fcff'ggg/L/ 12 STRTESER l K E MAJOR WEL'- '2 K Z9 50 t 5 53 35q gcH/wr .32; 40 4f 59 IANNUAL MAJoR\wELL LARGE WELL MEDIU wELL SMALL /wELL` PRoDucTwN BARRELS/M ,f1/

INVENTORS ALBERT J. MILLER a A ROLD C. THOMPSON ORNEY Nov. 15, 1955 A.J. MILLER ET AL EDUCATIONAL OIL GAME BOARD 5 sheets-sheet "3 Filed July29, 1952 INVENTORS BRRELS s300/BBL )moo/BBL OIL MARKET EACH oKENREPREseNTs 5o,ooo smo/BM saco/BBL ALBERT J. MILLER 8 HAROLD C. THOMPSONBY QW W ATTORNEY United States Patent O EDUCATIONAL OIL GAYLE. BOARDAlbert J. Miller, Independence, yMo., and Harold C. Thompson, Pitman, N.J., assignors to E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, Wimington, Del.,a corporation o`f Delaware v Application July 29, 1952, Serial JNO.301,428

7 Claims. (01.'273-4134.)

This invention relates to a game of instruction and entertainment, and,more particularly, to a zgame apparatus involving the discovery and.market-ing xof foil.

To more .readily understand the game, -it is necessary to describegenerally how oil prospecting is ycarried von, and to define some of theterms used which -rnay -not fbe generally known outside the oilindustry. i

Petroleum `products yare a vital factor in the present day economy, andthe .search for new oil vdeposits Vto `replace depleted wells liscarried on endlessly tto insure 'adequate supplies for the future. Thediscovery or strike of an oil field 'or deposit in any locality mayindicate the existence of further deposits nearby, land usually resultsin considerable speculation in the buying and selling of .land in thearea adjoining vthe fndf Fortunes vhave been made and lost in thenever-ending Search.

When ya strike has been .made on-any particular `'piece of land, thearea immediately adjacent thereto is considered proven, that is, thegchance of nding 'oil 'in that adjacent land is `recognized as beingabout l-i'n-S. Land comparatively remote from that -on which :the strike-has been made, but `still within the general area, -is called Wildcatland, and the chance of finding oil in tha-t -iand is about l-in-9.

A wildcatter isan independent oil operator who leases Wildcat ground`and drills for oil thereon.` iEssentially, he is one who is -willing`to ta'ke extreme risks. Some early wildcatters have made and lostseveral fortunes Vand are yet active, still following -a willo-thewisp-to fprowl the little-known regions, in their `search :for undergroundwealth. The urge of discovery draws them on; they seek hidden oil poolsand formations, whether the oil Vmarket is high or W. It is throughtheir wildcatting that many great fields have been discovered.

A dry hole or Cluster is a well that never produces any oil or gas. It.represents a complete loss of the thousands of dollars which it cos'tto drill.

In the oil industry, 4it is 'a Well-known certainty that every oil welleventually runs dry .and must :be replaced. .A depletion allowance is aprovision fof 'the .federal tax laws which, recognizing that foil wells'must ibe replaced, exempts from taxation a certain percentage of vanoil `'drillers income in order fto help create funds that may beavailable, when an existing producing well has 'run dry, to drill anew.The nations interest and tha't of the oil pro'spector coincide. It; isthe oil prospecton individual or corporate, who 'must replace the lastwell with the next, and the previous million barrels ofoil with the nextmillion, if our proven oilreserves are to be maintained. The net electof `this depletionv allowance is to reduce the amount of taxes which adriller otherwise would have to pay and thus permit him to ybuild up areserve for use in future prospecting.

A gas well is one in which, instead of oil, the ydriller inds naturalgas, which isa useful commodity and may be sold. Gas pockets arefrequently associated with oil pools.

It is' the primary object of this invention to provide'a 2,723,857Patented Nov. 15, 1955 ICC .game based on the successes `and failuresencountered in the production of oil.

lt is another object to provide a game, which will give the playersa-clear understanding of the risks and problems which are involved inthe finding of oil deposits, the drilling of oil wells, and themarketing of the oil produced.

lt is a further object to provide such a game which will graphicallydemonstrate the effect of depletion allowances and taxes on the netreturn to an oil di'iller.

- It is a still further object to provide -a game of the type describedwhich is adapted to be played by one or more players.

It is a very specic object to provide Va game apparatus which is adaptedto be used in a game of the type described.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the followingdescription, considered in conjunction vwith the accompanying drawings,which illustrate a preferred embodimentand in which:

Figure l is a plan view of a game board 'used injplaying 'the game;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of a chart A used in conjunction with the gameboard;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of a chart B used in conjunction with the gameboard;

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a chart C used in conjunction with the gameboard; and

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of certain tokens and other markers (notdrawn to scale.) which may be used in playing the game.

Referring to Fig. 1, it will be seen that the playing board is comprisedof 'a central portion or prospecting field 11, preferably divided by aseries of vertical and 2horizontal lines forming a plurality ofgeometrical areas 12, representing ground lots or leaseholds availablefor leasing by a player, and a continuous pa'th 13 divided into a numberof corresponding geometrical areas 14 'surrounding and in alignment withthe leaseholds 12 a'nd affording a track for the purpose of continuityo'f p'lay. Although these geometrical areas 12 and 14 are hereconveniently shown as squares of equal size, it will be understood thatthey may be of various sizes and shapes; for example, the vertical andhorizontal lines which 'form these geometrical areas may be omitted andthe areas delineated by circles, squares, or other shapes, and the areasin any given ernbodirnent of the game may vary in si'ze.

In vthe preferred embodiment of the 'game b'oard shown, one of thegeometrical areas 15 in the prospecting 'iield `11 is designated Oil andrepresents land in which oil has been found and is being produced. Thisparticular lease is not Afor sale in the game. Oil area 15 is here'shown in Athe exact center of the eld 11, althoughl it will beunderstood that it may be at any location therein. Immediately adjoiningOil area 15, and at right angles thereto, are one or more (preferablyfour) leaseholds 16 designated Proven lots, as explained above.

Although not essential, it has been found convenient to have one or moresmall holes 17 in each of the leasehold's 12 and 16 (here onlyrepresentatively shown) for a purpose 'to be described below.

At 'any predetermined location in path 13 (here preferably shown in thecorners), there are Vinstruction spaces 1S, 19, 20, 2.1, and 22; space18 being designated Startf space 19 Get lOil Production As You Pass,space 20 Reactiva'te One Dry Lease, 'space 21 Sell 'Oil As You Pass,'and space .22 Buy Any Uno'wned Lease. The stopping on or the passingover any of these spaces in his course around path 13 suggests stepswhich a player may take.

Each of the geometrical areas 14 in the path 13, eX- cept the cornerspaces, is designated by a number for a purpose described below.

In the preferred embodiment shown in Fig. 1, there are eighty-one spaces12, 15, and 16 in the prospecting field 11 (nine on a side) and fortyspaces 14 in path 13 (nine on each side plus four corner spaces).

Where desired, each of the side edges 23, 24, 25, and 26, of the gameboard may be colored in different colors (here shown, for example, asred, yellow, blue, and green, respectively) for purposes ofidentification.

Referring to Fig. 2, chart A is comprised of a plurality of intersectingcolumns. A column 27 represents the numbers on dice or any othersuitable chance-indicating element or means.

A column 28 represents the type of land on which a player elects todrill, column 28 being further divided into two sub-columns 29 and 30,designated Wildcat and Proven, respectively.

A column 31 shows the Strike Results. It will be noted that in theProven column 30, there are twice the number of strike opportunities asthere are in the Wildcat column 29. It will likewise be noted that inthe Strike Results column 31, there are four chances for a Small Well,two for a Medium Well, one for a Large Well, one for a Major Well, andthree for a Gas Well. The purpose and effect of these designations inchart A will be fully explained below in connection with the actual playof the game, but it Will be obvious that the number of strikeopportunities and the number of chances for the various types of wellsmay be varied as desired. Those shown here more-or-less conform toactual experience.

A fourth major column is designated Earnings column 32 which shows theeffect of depletion allowances and taxes by being subdivided into aGross Sales column 33 and a Net Return After Taxes and DepletionAllowance column 34. The gures shown in the latter column closelyapproximate those actually resulting under the 1951 tax law, but theymay be adjusted to suit the prevailing tax rates at any given time. Thischart A may be conveniently included on one or more sides of the gameboard itself; or it may be on a separate card or cards; or it may beincluded in a book of instructions accompanying the board.

Referring to Fig. 3, chart B is intended primarily as a score board and,like chart A, is comprised of a plurality of intersecting columns. Itshows the annual production of oil for each year of an oil wells lifeexpectancy. An Annual Production column 35 shows vertically thedecreasing amounts of oil (in barrels) that may be produced in each ofsix years, each horizontal line representing one year. A Major Wellcolumn 36 shows that such a well will produce oil for six years; a LargeWell column 37 for five years; a Medium Well column 38 for four years;and a Small Well column 39 for three years. Each of the aforementionedwells columns 36, 37, 38, and 39 may be subdivided into any number ofvertical spaces each representing one well of the category indicated,but it has been found convenient to provide for two Major Wells, twoLarge Wells, four Medium Wells, and four Small Wells. Each sub-column ispreferably provided with a heading space 40 and a small hole 41 thereinfor a purpose more fully described below. While any number of horizontalcolumns, each representing a years production, may bev used, it has beenfound that the ratio of oil production shown for the four types of wellsis fairly typical of actual conditions in many areas. Chart B, likechart A, may be included for convenience on the board itself; or on aseparate card or cards; or in an instruction book.

Referring to Fig. 4, chart C represents an Oil Market and contains fourcolumns 42, 43, 44, and 45, which bear the headings $l.00/bbl.,"$2.00/bbl., $3.00/bbl., and S400/bbl, respectively, or any othersuitable legends. These represent selling prices of oil, and have beenarbitrarily selected for the sake of simplicity, but it will beunderstood that any other desired prices may be used as headings forthese columns. As shown, each column 42, 43, 44, and 45 is subdividedinto a certain number of spaces, here represented by holes 46 in thechart adapted to receive pins extended from the bottom of variousmarkers later described. Any other method of delineating spaces withineach column may be used, such as a plurality of horizontal lines (notshown). In the preferred embodiment, it will be noted that two spaceshave been provided in column 42, eight in column 43, eight in column 44,and two in column 45. Obviously, the number of spaces provided in eachcolumn may be increased or decreased, as desired. Chart C may also beincluded as part of the game board; or may be printed on a separate cardor cards.

Referring to Fig. 5, the markers used in conjunction with the game maybe of any desired configuration or size, but are preferably of the typeshown here, as follows:

A token 47 is used as a means of player identification in moving alongpath 13 and is preferably colored to indicate the player.

A marker 48 is adapted to be placed on one or more of the leaseholds 12and 16 in the prospecting field 11 to designate ownership of theproperty by virtue of the color indicating the player.

A marker 49, here shown as approximating the shape of an oil derrick, isadapted to be placed upon any of the geometrical areas 12 and 16 toindicate the strike of oil on that property. It is likewise colored todesignate ownership.

A marker 50, similar to marker 49, but bearing a distinctive color, andcalled a drilling rig, is placed in the hands of a banker for use asdescribed below.

A marker 51, here conveniently shown of the same configuration as marker48, but preferably distinctively colored, represents any desiredquantity of oil, here shown as 50,000 barrels, a number of these markers51 being initially placed in the Oil Market chart C.

Markers 48, 49, 50, and 51 preferably are each provided with a peg orpin 52 extending from its bottom side and adapted to tit the holes 17,41, and 46 described above.

A pair of ordinary dice 53, or other suitable chanceindicating elementor means (not shown), is used in the playing of this game as describedbelow.

Imitation money 54 is initially supplied to each of the players and thebanker (who may be a non-player or one of the players) in pre-determinedamounts and denominations for use in the various transactions occurringduring the play; for example, $910,000 in the following denominations:

5-100 thousand dollar bills- $500,000 5- 50 thousand dollarbills-$250,000 10 10 thousand dollar bills-$100,000 10- 5 thousanddollar blls$ 50,000 10 1 thousand dollar bills$ 10,000

The object of the game is to secure oil-producing wells and make aprofit thereon as rapidly as possible. The length of the game will vary,and may be arbitrarily predetermined in any Way. For example, the playerwith the greatest assets (cash and holdings in oil and leases) at theend of a certain time limit, say, two hours, may be declared the winner;or, when two or any other number of players have gone bankrupt, the gamemay be terminated and the winner found by a totaling of assets. A playeris said to be bankrupt when he no longer has sutiicient assets to drillor to lease ground, or when he fails to meet an obligation, or if hecannot make a deal with another player to raise sufficient capital tocontinue. Another method of terminating the game may be bypredetermining that the winner shall be the rst player to acquire acertain number of oil wells, for example, tive producing wells.

In actual play of the preferred embodiment of the game, the playertokens 47 are placed on the "Start space 18, each player beingrepresented by a marker of 5 his respective color or any otherdistinguishing means. Each player .then throws `the dice 53 for highnumber `to determine which one starts the play. Thereafter, the playmoves clockwise in turn. In play, a complete circuit of path 13 by aplayer represents a full years operations for that player. On a playersrst turn, he moves his token 47 from Start space 18 the number of spaces14 in path 13 indicated byhis roll of the dice 53. The player then hasthe option of purchasing any leasehold 12 or 16 in a direct vline acrossthe board from the space on which his token stops. The purchase price ofthe leasehold is determined by multiplying the numbers in spaces 14 atthe ends of the two rows which converge on that leasehold, each unitpreferably representing $1,000. For example, referring to Fig. l, if aplayers `token 47 stops .opposite the number 4, and he elects .topurchase the third leasehold from path 13, this will correspond -to the,number 6 in the other column containing that leasehold. The product of4X 6, or 24, represents a price of $24,000. If the leasehold selected.is a proven leasehold 16, $50,000 is added to the price determined asabove. The player pays this amount to the banker, and places one of hisownership markers 48 on that leasehold.

In subsequent plays, he may elect not to purchase any more land, waitfor his next turn, and then further ad- Vance this token 47 along path13 with the aforesaid options.

After a player has acquired one or more leaseholds 12 or 16, he has .thefurther option, on his next turn, of drilling on any lease he owns. Todo so, he rents the distinctively-colored drilling rig 50 from ythebanker, at a rental of $50,000, and places it on the particularleasehold 12 or 16 where he elects to drill. He then throws the dice,and the result is indicated in chart A shown in Fig. 2 opposite theamount of his throw. If the leasehold is a Wildcat leasehold 12 he usesthe -Wildcat sub-column 29 of chart A. If .the leasehold is a provenleasehold 16, he uses the proven ,sub-column 30. If this results in adry well, drilling rig 50 is returned to the banker, and a second marker48 is placed on that leasehold to indicate a dry hole. Two dry holes maybe drilled before a lease is considered completely dry or a dusterf Oncea leasehold is dry, it is valueless, unless the players token 47 stopson the Reactivate One Dry Lease instruction space at some subsequenttrip around path 13. In the latter case, the two dry hole markers areremoved and the leasehold may be re-drilled on a later turn.

If the drilling indicates a Show of Oil, or Lost Tool, he pays thebanker the sum indicated on chart A but gets a second turn to throw thedice. If the result of the players first or second throw of the dice isa strike, he throws the dice once more and inds the ultimate result ofhis drilling in the Strike Result column 31 of chart A. If this is a GasWell, he returns the drilling rig 50, sells the gas to the banker at theligure indicated thereon, and receives from the banker that amount lesstaxes, as shown in the Net Return column 34 in chart B, Fig. 3, but noadditional marker is placed on that particular leasehold. If he gets anoil well, the player returns the drilling rig 50 to the banker, replacesit with one of his own derrick markers 49, and places a marker 48 onchart B in the head space 40 of the column which indicates the type ofwell he has acquired; i. e., a Major Well, a Large Well, a Medium Well,or a Small Well.

An immediate etect of an oil strike is that any wildcat leaseholdsadjoining and at right angles to that oil land become proven leaseholdsand their values are increased by $50,000 because the chances of astrike thereon are greatly enhanced.

In each ensuing turn, the player again has the option of advancingfarther along path 13 or of drilling yfor oil on anyone of hisleaseholds 12 or 16. If he elects to do the former, Ahe then has thefurther option of purchasing any un-owned ieaseho'ld 12 or 1'6 in therow directly opposite 'the space 14 on which his token 47 stops. He mayor may not exercise this option, yas he sees t.

If a players token 47 stops on instruction space 22, bearing the VlegendBuy Any Un-Owned Lease, hev may purchase any unsold leasehold inlprospecting iield 11 regardless of its location.

When aplayer stops on orpasses over instruction space 1'9, IGet OilProduction As You Pass, the -banker removes from the oil market chart Cthe number of oil production markers 51, indicated in column 32 of chartB for all wells the player owns, and gives them to the player. Eachmarker 51 `preferably represents 50,000 barrels of oil.

When issuing oil production from the Oil Market chart C, Fig. 4, thebanker first removes the markers 51 from the S/bbl. column, thenysuccessively those from Athe $2.00/bbl. column, the "$3.'00/bbl.column, and the $4.00/bbl. column. Should oil production markers v51need to -be issued in excess of the Oil Market chart C spaces, they areissued from an excess supply.

Whenever the players token 47 passes over 'or Vstops on instructionspace 21, Sell Oil As You Pass, the player may elect to sell to thebanker any desired number of barrels of oil he has. The selling price ofthe oil Vis always xed at the highest price indicated by the vacantspaces in oil market chart C, so the banker places the oil sold to himin chart C in reverse order from that in which `it was issued. In otherwords, if there are any vacant spaces in the $4.00/bbl. column, the rstoil sold to him is replaced in that column, and paid for at that rate,then in the S300/bbl. column, and so on. The gross sales price of theoil is then reduced by taxes and the net added to by a depletionallowance and the net amount shown in column 34 -chart A is paid by thebanker to the selling player in imitation money 54. When excess markers51 have been issued and are sold while the Oil Market" spaces are full,the price of the excess markers is only $1.00 per barrel, thusreiiecting the law of supply and demand.

A player may elect to hold any desired part of his production oi themarket in an eiort to secure a higher selling price which, of course,depends on the amount of oil issued.

If oil is sold, no other transaction, such as leasing or drilling, canbe made on that turn.

As will be evident from a study of the above description, manyopportunities for bargaining with other players will arise. Forinstance, a player holding a Wildcat leasehold adjacent to anotherplayers leasehold may nd it expedient to contribute to the cost and thusencourage the other player to drill on his leasehold. If a strikeresults, the rst players leasehold 12 becomes a proven area with itsnormal value increased by $50,000 and its own chances of a strike on anysubsequent drilling thereon greatly enhanced. Also, if one player hasacquired a number of leaseholds in any particular area, he may wish tobuy out another players leasehold in his area for an agreed price.

One player for each side of the board is the ideal number, but a largeror smaller number may play if desired. Two or more players may team upto form a company. Such a company receives the same amount of money andmarkers issued to an individual player, but has the advantage of pittingthe combined judgment of the group against that of the individualplayers in making decisions and deals in the eiort to win.

The board and charts A, B, and C may be constructed of any suitablematerial, such as heavy paper, cardboard, wood, plastic, articialleather, or metal sheeting. Markers 47, 48, 49, 50, and 51 may also beof any suitable lmaterial, such asheavy paper, cardboard, wood, plastic,

thereof.

Various modications may be made in the rules and play of the game, aswell as in the game apparatus described above, but the game willgenerally be one of great interest and entertainment, as well as beinggenuinely instructive as to the problems and operations in the oilindustry.

It is apparent that many widely diierent embodiments of this inventionmay be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof; and,therefore, it is not intended to be limited except as indicated in theappended claims.

We claim:

1. In a game, a board provided with a central portion comprising aplurality of geometrical areas representing ground lots available forleasing at predetermined prices, a path of geometrical areascorresponding in shape and size to said first-mentioned areas and incontiguous alignment therewith, said path aiording a continuous trackfor the purpose of continuity of play, chance-indicating means fordetermining the distance a player may move along said path and fordetermining certain moves to be made in the game, a drilling andearnings chart having a plurality of intersecting columns indicating theresults of the numbers obtained by the chance-indicating means, and aproduction chart having a series of intersecting columns adapted to showthe annual production of an oil wells life expectancy.

2. The game of claim 1 in which the last-mentioned chart contains acolumn designated Major Well, a column designated Large Well, a columndesignated Medium Well, and a column designated Small Well, and in whichthe number of producing years for each of the types of wells isrespectively shown.

3. In a game, a board provided with a central portion comprising aplurality of geometrical areas representing ground lots available forleasing at predetermined prices, a path of geometrical areascorresponding in shape and size to said first-mentioned areas and incontiguous alignment therewith, said path affording a continuous trackfor the purpose of continuity of play, chance-indicating means fordetermining the distance a player may move along said path and fordetermining certain moves to be made in the game, a drilling andearnings chart having a plurality of intersecting columns indicating theresults of the numbers obtained by the chance-indicating means, aproduction chart having a series of intersecting columns adapted to showthe annual production of an oil wells life expectancy, and means fordetermining the market price of oil to be sold.

4. The game of claim 3, in which the means for determining the marketprice of oil to be sold comprises an oil market chart having a pluralityof vertical columns bearing appropriate varying sale price legends andspaces within those columns to accommodate a predetermined number ofmarkers representing unit quantities of oil.

5. ln a game, a board provided with a central portion comprising aplurality of geometrical areas representing ground lots available forleasing at predetermined prices, a path of geometrical areascorresponding in shape and size to said first-mentioned areas and incontiguous alignment therewith, said path affording a continuous trackfor the purpose of continuity of play, chance-indicating means fordetermining the distance a player lmay move along said path, andplayer-identification markers.

6. The game of claim 5 in which the markers comprise tokens to be usedon the path and ownership markers to be used on the ground lots.

7. In a game illustrating the operations in the oil industry, a boardcomprising a plurality of geometrical areas representing ground lotsavailable for leasing at predetermined prices; a path of geometricalareas corresponding in shape and size to said first-mentioned areas andin contiguous alignment therewith, said path affording a continuoustrack for the purpose of continuity of play; chance-indicating means fordetermining the distance a player may move along said path and fordetermining certain moves to be made in the game; a plurality of chartsfor use in connection therewith to determine the consequence of theresults obtained by the chance-indicating means, one of said chartsdesignating the type of land drilled and the results obtained thereby,another of said charts designating the oil yield from any well obtained,and another of said charts designating the sale price of any oilproduction sold; and a plurality of player-identification markers.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,095,934 Seed May 5, 1914 1,537,605 Hansen May 12, 1925 1,551,951Haibloom Sept. l, 1925 1,629,398 Link May 17, 1927 2,178,330 Thomas Oct.31, 1939 2,273,292 Smith Feb. 17, 1942

